If you ever wonder why “Fed watchers” exist, look no further than Ben Bernanke’s verbal gynmastics at a press conference this week.

The Federal Reserve chairman has befuddled investors for the second straight month with a seemingly mixed message on the central bank’s intentions. He reiterated as he always does that the Fed will only scale back stimulus for the economy once it’s clear that growth and job creation are improving. Yet he also appeared to lay out a specific timetable for the Fed to begin its withdrawal, starting in the waning months of 2013.

People who get paid money to figure out what the Fed thinks aren’t sure what to make of this.

Tongues are wagging in Washington over the dissing of American workers by an aide to rising political star Marco Rubio. The quote appeared in a New Yorker article written by Ryan Lizza on the politics of immigration reform.

“There are American workers who, for lack of a better term, can’t cut it. There shouldn’t be a presumption that every American worker is a star performer,” the aide said.